Hacker News Board Hacker News, browsed like a classic message board
Live data from Hacker News

Kroger's Digital Struggle

joshstrange.com

Post reply on HN
Print view View original

31–40 of 80 posts

Re: Kroger's Digital Struggle

#31

Post by throwaway892238 »

It's a strange thing to watch someone admit their own ignorance, and then immediately disregard it, in order to make a case for something that they - by their own admission - can't possibly understand. It's a doublethink poem. I don't think; therefore, I am.

Perhaps the disconnect is his belief that "what I do know is technology and UI/UX." Perhaps he really believes he knows how to build technology like this. But his complaints are those of a person who clearly only thinks of technology, as technology. Not as the stupid redneck in Arkansas who needs to use a shitty mobile connection in order to find out if diapers are on sale yet; but as the lofty technologist, surveying the digital landscape from his 100-gigabit 16-cpu latest-generation pocket powerhouse, flicking through content faster than it can render, concluding that the technological marvel of dreary old-world tech to be wanting.

The poor fools! They don't understand what I, a technology UI/UX expert, want in a mobile app! How foolish that they have not implemented what their competition has. It can only be incompetence. Not to worry though. I, the technological wunderkind, will write a blog post. I will educate them on their shortcomings, and inform them of the correct path to profitability. It's my duty to help these poor sods realize the truth: that they are not yet advanced enough. But with my help, they'll get there.

Re: Kroger's Digital Struggle

#32

Post by xp84 »

sgerenser wrote: post #20
htrp wrote: post #4

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Do you really think that SWE grads are lining up to work at Kroger?

Definitely not. They’re all waiting for a call back from the tech giant known as Albertsons.

Ha! Joke will be on them when our megamerger goes through!

- Kroger

Re: Kroger's Digital Struggle

#33

Post by jldugger »

Tech, let me introduce low margin retail. Kroger has a margin between 1 and 2 percent: https://finance.yahoo.com/quote/KR/key-statistics (depending on your preferred measure). And yoy earnings are down.

And it's even worse in the delivery app subcategory. Why bother with that tech when Instacart etc are losing 3 dollars for every dollar they bring in? Seems like best case scenario you get to sell to their customers at full price and Instacart shareholders pay for delivery fees.

Re: Kroger's Digital Struggle

#34

Post by xp84 »

kylehotchkiss wrote: post #9

> I want better for Kroger Same company who avoided Apple Pay for years to push their ridiculous Kroger Pay.

Ehh, it at least has its advantage, that you can apply loyalty and payment at the same time. I know Walgreens integrated their loyalty with Apple Wallet too, but in practice that means you have to (ensuring unlocked-ness both times) present the phone to the reader once before the cashier puts it into the payment "mode" and again after. KP is annoying that it takes a couple taps to get its barcode on your screen but at least it's one and done.

Re: Kroger's Digital Struggle

#36

Post by ars »

xp84 wrote: post #34
kylehotchkiss wrote: post #9

> I want better for Kroger Same company who avoided Apple Pay for years to push their ridiculous Kroger Pay.

Ehh, it at least has its advantage, that you can apply loyalty and payment at the same time. I know Walgreens integrated their loyalty with Apple Wallet too, but in practice that means you have to (ensuring unlocked-ness both times) present the phone to the reader once before the cashier puts it into the payment "mode" and again after. KP is annoying that it takes a couple taps to get its barcode on your screen but a…

You can link the loyalty to the credit card number. You can have more that one loyalty linked to it and just ask the user which one to apply it to.

HomeDepot and the USPS both will send me an email receipt and they remember my address when I put in a credit card.

Re: Kroger's Digital Struggle

#37

Post by vgeek »

silisili wrote: post #28
Uvix wrote: post #19

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Blue Ash is a suburb of Cincinnati (where Kroger is headquartered), so not quite the middle of nowhere but also not exactly a tech hotspot.

Thanks. I'm not super well versed in Cinci and didn't mean to insult them as a city, but it seems like Blue Ash is 15 miles from the city center and 30 miles to the airport. Seemed kinda far out accounting for traffic and such. Or is it one of those cities where more is going on in the suburbs than the city proper(lived in one of those myself)?

Blue Ash is a more educated/affluent suburb with significant P&G and Kroger facilities. Probably preferable to a 1hr each way (typical for many suburbs to downtown) commute and paying for parking. Downtown Cincinnati is kind of boring-- there have been a few new places open, but there are better choices for food and entertainment in various other neighborhoods.

I had an interview at Kroger HQ out of college and it was probably the most depressing office building I had ever been in. That combined with the type of work encountered at legacy industry bigco and it has to be hard to recruit anyone decent. (This coming from someone who is wildly inept, too :D)

Their analytics company 84.51/dunnhumby was always the flashier option that could recruit at a national level.

Re: Kroger's Digital Struggle

#38

Post by kube-system »

jldugger wrote: post #33

Tech, let me introduce low margin retail. Kroger has a margin between 1 and 2 percent: https://finance.yahoo.com/quote/KR/key-statistics (depending on your preferred measure). And yoy earnings are down. And it's even worse in the delivery app subcategory. Why bother with that tech when Instacart etc are losing 3 dollars for every dollar they bring in? Seems like best case scenario you get to sell to their customers a…

And a just couple percentage points higher in margins was enough to earn the name "whole paycheck".

Re: Kroger's Digital Struggle

#39

Post by alphager »

throwaway892238 wrote: post #31

It's a strange thing to watch someone admit their own ignorance, and then immediately disregard it, in order to make a case for something that they - by their own admission - can't possibly understand. It's a doublethink poem. I don't think; therefore, I am. Perhaps the disconnect is his belief that "what I do know is technology and UI/UX." Perhaps he really believes he knows how to build technology like this. But hi…

You wrote three long paragraphs without mentioning a single point where the big post was wrong or an explanation for one of the shortcomings. Impressive!
Post reply on HN